Wayland: Book Group hopes discussion defuses Middle East conflict

Monday

Jul 21, 2014 at 12:01 AMSep 18, 2017 at 10:14 PM

By Chris BergeronDaily News Staff

WAYLAND - When the Interfaith Book Group met Sunday at the Islamic Center of Boston to discuss ways to overcome religious misunderstandings, Israeli troops were battling Palestinian fighters in Gaza. Founder Shaheen Akhtar led a prayer asking the "Creator of the Universe'' to remind "Jews, Christians and Muslims … they are followers of the One God, children of Abraham, brothers and sisters.'' A Muslim and a Framingham resident, Akhtar started the group after the 9/11 attacks to provide a way for people of different religions to defuse the stereotypes that fueled such violence. With a week remaining in Ramadan, the month Muslims devote to fasting and purification, Akhtar believes members set an example "of people working together as a force for good.'' During their monthly meeting in the Wayland mosque, they discussed Eboo Patel's memoir, "Acts of Faith." Akhtar said, "We believe just because we differ in theology, we can still discover our common humanity and engage in dialogue that makes the world a better place.'' Can a book club really change the world? Members insist it does. Ten-year member David Grinstein said he's learned a lot about Islam that reinforced his belief "treating others with mutual respect goes a long way to make things better.'' "Some Muslims need to understand the Jewish pain of the Holocaust,'' said the Jewish professor from Waltham, "and Jews need to understand the Palestinian narrative when they were displaced in 1948 from their homes.'' Original member Mary Ann Borkowski agreed such groups typically attract "people willing to question their own beliefs.'' "By having such discussions, we increase a dialogue that seems lacking elsewhere,'' said the Lutheran from Wayland. "Sometimes our leaders don't want to hear from people calling for moderation. It's crucial for our voices to be heard.'' Whatever good it achieves, Rabbi Neal Gold, senior rabbi of Temple Shir Tikva in Wayland, doesn't believe "a book club will resolve'' the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestinians. "It's not a Jewish-Muslim issue. It's a political conflict between two entities,'' he said. Gold stressed neither Jews nor Muslims "should be judged by the extremists" among them. "But I want my Muslim friends to understand ... to be a Jew in the 21st century is to have a living, breathing connection to the state of Israel,'' he said. Gold said the "majority of Jews are greatly disturbed by the (expansion of Jewish) settlements,'' but he characterized Hamas, which has launched rocket attacks on Israel, as a terrorist organization that doesn't represent Palestinian interests. "It's important the current conflict doesn't become a religious war between Jews and Muslims,'' said Gold. "It's a facet of the war of terrorism." But Robyn Bernstein, whose mother was killed in the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, said she never "wanted others to die in a war'' to revenge the attack's victims. "I think the only way this age-old conflict will end is when we know each other as individuals and not as a group we've been urged to hate,'' said the Bolton resident. "All around the world, peace groups are little by little making a difference.'' Malik Khan, former past president of the Islamic Center, stressed the current conflict wasn't caused by the actions of militants on either side but resulted from "a sequence of events in the Middle East over centuries that have brought us to this place.'' "What happens on the surface often doesn't show the real forces that caused it,'' said the Pakistan native. "In the past, different groups exploited ethnic and political fault lines. Hatreds were enflamed and a situation was created that forced a terrible injustice on Palestinians living there.'' During 40 years in the U.S., the Boxborough resident has come to treasure Americans' habit of hearing others points of view before forming an opinion. "I pray Americans talk to Muslims and hear our concerns. If ordinary people talk, hopefully politicians will follow,'' said Khan. "Only God know how this will all turn out.''